Have you noticed how we rarely do anything on our own anymore? My mother likes to call me the master of delegation. Meet me. I am the type of person that buys everything from toilet paper to toothbrushes and dishwasher detergent on Amazon.com.
I have a lawyer, an accountant, a publicist, a graphic designer, a writer, an assistant, a cleaning service, an aesthetician, a hair stylist, and a personal trainer. I even had someone at one point who managed my online dating profiles. And if that seems like a lot to you, most people I know have gardeners, pool servicers, dog walkers and a variety of other services you may not even believe existed (sleep butler, anyone?).
I argue that delegation is best because it allows the servicemen to do what they are good at so one can focus on what they themselves are good at. But are we really doing what we are good at, or are we just spending more time distracting ourselves with less-important tasks like incessantly checking our Facebook newsfeed, updating our every move on Twitter and beautifying our mobile photos on Instagram filters?
In recent months I have found myself bored while driving (If I could afford to, here is where I would hire a driver) so I often find myself fantasizing about what I could be doing (again checking email, Facebook, jumping on a call) to just feel busy! Then it occurred to me that the problem is that I (like many others out there) are equating being busy with being valuable. And if that's true, then why am I delegating almost every task that I have?
Here is what I realized. Firstly, being busy does not always equate with how valuable one is. One can make themselves busy with a variety of meaningless tasks, so value every moment that you have and when you are busy ask yourself, is this something that really is helpful to my future and my life?
And lastly, but most importantly, if you choose to delegate, know its OK to have some down time. Life can't always be a frenetic power play game of who gets the most done first, or else we will all die of stress-related illnesses and family loses its meaning. So enjoy some time off and focus on those that you can't tend to when you are busy.
As for me and my need to delegate, I don't think that will ever stop, but I have vowed from here on in, on the occasions I find myself with free moments of time, I will enjoy my boredom rather than curse it and remember that time is something that cannot be taken advantage of!
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